Short skirts and breast juts: cheerleading, eroticism and schools

Authors: Bettis, Pamela¹; Adams, Natalie Guice²

Source: Sex Education, Volume 6, Number 2, May 2006 , pp. 121-133(13)

Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group

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Abstract:

Cheerleading, an American invention, has 3.8 million participants in the United States, 97% of whom are female. It is an adult‐sanctioned and typically school‐affiliated activity that remains popular in spite of the increase in sports' opportunities for girls in schools. Drawing from popular culture and a middle school ethnography, the authors document the enduring popularity of cheerleading and how it is a vehicle through which adolescent girls may try out various facets of what it means to be a contemporary American woman. The cheerleader represents both the `good' girl as well as the sexy tease. Understanding the sexual tensions embedded in cheerleading in its nation of origin may provide educators in different national contexts ideas of how to use cheerleading as an educational tool.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1080/14681810600578800

Affiliations: 1: Washington State University 2: University of Alabama

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